The Anime Adventure
by Skye101
Summary: You look anime, got sucked into the anime world, be trained as a ninja, and eventually trapped in a whirlpool of unexpected events? And you ask What the hell is going on? And they say, You're getting married! Read and Review!
1. Chapter 1

**Megumi: **

My cousin, Suzanne, and I were kneeling down in front of her laptop, staring at someone's face. It was the face that could launch a thousand ships, no, actually, we were staring, or rather _she_ was staring while I was looking at the picture. Her Desktop background, Uchiha Itachi's face. She's so obsessed with him, and I can't keep up with her. We were feeling pretty sad, because we knew those kinds of people are only anime characters. Well, anyway, we really made a story about those, and of course, we always updated it.

Suddenly, the picture moved. At first, I thought it was the trick of the light, but when my cousin grasped my arm, I knew it was for real. In a split- second, the next thing we knew, Itachi (the guy in the picture) was standing there, absolutely right in front of us. We were so stupefied, we never dared to say a word. He looked about calmly, then said "Pouvez vous mais- dais?"

We were horrified. One of our idols we'd been hoping to meet spoke French! Then he spoke again. "Nah, just kidding. I don't speak French. Oh, yeah. I noticed you both staring at me. It was irritating. Of all the people who did that, you are the most intense. I couldn't stand not blinking for more than a minute, and I also really wanted to take one of you away. So here goes."

Imagine our relief when he started speaking English! But our suspicion grew back once he announced he was taking one of us with him. Then, it was followed by Itachi taking hold of my cousin's arm and dragging it back to the laptop's screen. Much as I liked it to meet him, of course I couldn't let him take away my cousin with him.

But two things happened. One, at once, we both forgot the story we had made. (I don't know why, but I was able to take note of this fact.) And two, once Itachi touched my cousin, she kind of like, glowed and suddenly, her face changed. As what we had discussed on our previous stories, she'd said she wanted to have green, deep green eyes and dark, dark brown hair. And in an instant, it became true. She was staring at me with those green eyes of hers. I couldn't understand what was really going on, but I confess it had me intrigued right then and there. Well, anyway, he started pulling her.

Of course, I also started pulling her from the other side. She screamed ,"Agay! Sakit baya na! Buhi-i kuno ko! Jedidiah, tabangi kuno ko! (Ow! It hurts, you know! Let me go! Jedidiah, help me, will you?!)"

For a moment, Itachi seemed unsure. "What're you saying? Speak English, for heaven's sake!"

My cousin again screamed "I don't care if I speak any language, honestly, this is enough! Unhand me!"

He shook his head. "Sorry, I just can't. Tell your friend there to stop pulling your other arm!"

"I won't! And she's my cousin!"

I started to go crazy. Man, this guy was very, very determined, and nothing could stop him. Well, nothing would stop me too. I pulled harder. Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I saw someone also emerge from the laptop. Still a boy.

The first boy stopped. But he didn't let go of my cousin. "Sasuke!" he barked. "What are you doing here?"

Sasuke, or whoever he was, looked at me and said "Who are you?"

I replied, "I don't care whatever you call me, just help me get my cousin from this maniac!"

He said, "Sorry, I've got orders to also take your... cousin?"

"Yeah. My cousin. And I'm equally sorry, yes, she _is_ my cousin and I'm not gonna leave her alone. Shoo!"

"I'm not some dog."

"I know. You're not a dog, just a stupid cockroach."

"Shut up."

"You shut up."

"Jed?! He's getting away with it!!!" Suzanne cried out.

"I'm there!" I called back.

Without warning, this guy called Sasuke pulled me off and took my place on my cousin's arm. I was about to say, "Hey! That was rude of you!" Instead, I felt a funny sensation, and I saw my cousin staring at me. "What?" I managed to ask her in the midst of chaos.

"Your eyes are hazel," she remarked.

"I don't care!"

She shrugged while she still could. "They are. Ow! That was really way over the edge. Stop it!"

_Here goes nothing_, I thought. I started to pull the shirt of Sasuke in an attempt to redeem my original place. "Get out of there, you goof!"

"Don't disturb me!"

"None of you can get my cousin!!!"

He turned around and said," Will you keep quiet for a minute?! I'm trying to concentrate here!"

But it was too late. When he turned back, Itachi had already pulled Suzanne through the laptop. I panicked, and I couldn't think of anything else to do.

So I pushed Sasuke into the laptop screaming, "Get my cousin back!!!"

Because of this, he stumbled and fell through the computer. I suppose there had to be some kind of stones or slippery stuff to where he landed, because he sort of slipped, and in reaction to this, the idiot pulled the hem of my shirt to keep himself from falling. So...into the laptop I also went.

When I looked back, the last thing I remembered was the "doorway" closing. I remember throwing myself back but the guy who started it pulled me back.

He grasped me in front of him and said firmly, "You can't go back. Stay here. You can help me look for your cousin. Understand? It will open again when we have found your cousin."

I could only nod. Finally, I managed to say, "What about my family? What's gonna happen? My cousin's family? What'll I do? They're gonna worry!"

"Well, _you_ don't worry because they'll just get on with their lives as if you didn't even exist. When you go back, that's when they'll remember you."

"Ookay." I was still a bit nervous.

I looked at the path and my nervousness returned. I tapped the guy who started to walk away. He turned. "What?"

"Um.. I don't know my way around here. I'm not from this place. And look at me! I've become like you!" Sure enough, I looked like an anime character.

He raised an eyebrow. "So?"

I let out a sigh of exasperation. "You don't get it! I want you to tell me everything about this place. I want to go with you while looking for my cousin. Honestly, you're the only person I know around here. And you obviously know a lot. Well?"

He thought for a moment. "I suppose I could educate you a bit."

**Haruko:**

The guy, Itachi, was carrying me like you would a sack of rice. And I was so frustrated. Of course I was. Who wouldn't be?

Well, the last thing I remember was that my arms felt like they were lead, after all that pulling and shouting. And now, I was being treated like filth. "Why are you doing this to me?" I screamed. "I've got legs, you know! Let me walk, for goodness' sake!"

He stopped. "Just don't escape."

I stared at him like he was crazy. "Escape? If you'd had a bit of a mind, you'd be able to think that I don't know _anyone_ in this place. If I tried to escape, where would I go?"

"Anywhere."

"Yeah right. And for what purpose?"

"Escaping. Duh?"

I sighed. "I just want to point out that right now, I am in a place where I don't know anyone, and where I have never set foot before. So, because you're the only one I know around here, I'd like to go with you."

"Very well."

He set me down carefully, and boy, was I relieved! "Thank you," I said.

"You're welcome."

"What about my family? What's gonna happen to them?"

"They'll continue living on and they're gonna forget that you ever existed. Once you can go back, they will remember you again."

I thought for a moment. "That doesn't sound so bad."

He nodded.

"Wait, how about my cousin? What happened to her?"

"I'm sorry. I don't know what happened to her and my little brother."

"Brother? That was your brother?"

He nodded for the umpteenth time.

"Is nodding all you can do?"

This time, he grinned and shook his head.

"Okay. I understand that. What do you want to do with me, anyway? Are you just gonna keep me for a scientific experiment or something?"

"Of course not." A thought seemed to have struck him. "What's your name?"

"Princess Haruko," I answered without thinking. Then, I thought, _Why did I say that? My name is... is..._ I couldn't remember what my name was. The name "Haruko" seemed to pop off into my head, or something. Well, that was fine with me. At least I had a name that also fit among these people. Besides, they seemed pretty cool to me. Living life like an anime character... one word: awesome. Maybe I'd even be seen on TV when I get back home. And I trusted this guy... not implicitly, just enough. And somehow, I knew I'd find my cousin here. Maybe she even took another name too!

"... So, as I was saying, you have to be trained on how to use chakra under my supervision. And--"

"Wait, wait, wait. Rewind. What were you saying?"

He sighed for the first time. "You weren't listening, were you?"

I nodded meekly. "I was. Just a bit. Not really. No, I wasn't."

"I thought so. You've got a lot to learn. "

"Darn, I was hoping to have fun."

"Haruko, fun is not only the only thing in the world. There are other things too, you know."

"Such as?"

"Discipline, perseverance, skill, tolerance and responsibility."

"Sounds a lot to me."

"It IS a lot. And you have to achieve those... 'lot'. Well? Up for it?"

"Not really."

He stopped. "This is it. We've arrived. The Hidden Leaf Village of Konnoha."

I also stopped, and gazed at the most amazing town I had ever seen in my whole life.


	2. Chapter 2

**Megumi:**

All day long, I followed Sasuke into a little town he called "Konnoha". I had to admit, it was pretty neat and orderly for a town in constant danger of opposing ninja villages. In other words, you could call it...cute. Sort of. Totally. Well anyway, he led me to a sort of house, or a building, or something like that. It was actually nice, kind of like cozy or comfortable.

He walked up the stairs and after a moment's hesitation, I followed him. We stopped outside a room which was partly closed. Someone was talking. Or rather, there were some people talking, and at that moment, one of them was talking.

"Naruto, as I said, you can't do that. It needs a lot of training and discipline. You need a lot of things to develop before you can reach Sasuke's level."

At this, I raised my eyebrows at him. He didn't take any notice, although I was sure he did know I did it.

He sighed wearily, then said, "Don't mind them. They're always like that."

"Cute," I commented, looking at the old- fashioned sliding door. "What was this house, antique? Or, like what? Thirteenth century?"

Sasuke shook his head. "Don't ask," he muttered out of the corner of his mouth. "When we get in, don't say anything that could get us into trouble, understand? We're going in, and I want to make it clear that I did not fail."

"You mean that your reputation is still as good as ever."

"Whatever," he replied, while sliding the door at an even wider space. He entered.

There were three people in the room, a man who wore a mask leaving only an eye to show. Also, there was a blond- haired, blue - eyed guy, and a pink- haired girl with light, green eyes. She stood up as soon as Sasuke entered the room.

"Sasuke-kun!" she exclaimed. "Where were you? We were worried what happened to you." She rushed to him but he easily dodged her, ignoring her. He went straight to the man, who had been eyeing me in his weird one- eyed stare. As uncomfortable as this was, I considered it alright, because in all fairness, I was also staring at him in an unfashionable way.

"I never got the chance to get the girl, but this here's her cousin," he reported, gesturing to me.

"How did she happen to go with you?" The masked guy asked.

Sasuke scratched his head. But before he could get a word out, the blond guy had said, "Hey Sasuke, you never talk to girls. How come you actually brought her here?"

"Umm... it's actually a long story, and... umm..."

I stepped forward. "I can explain," I offered. But first, I looked at Sasuke to see his reaction. I went on, seeing him give a sigh of relief.

"My cousin and I were looking at someone's picture in the computer monitor, and suddenly, the picture moved. After a moment, it actually went out of the monitor and at first I thought it was a technical problem, or something to do with my retinas. But it was actually real. And before we could say anything, He started speaking French."

"French?" Sasuke interrupted. "Itachi spoke French?"

"I don't know, but it was something in another language. Although I think it _was_ French. Anyway..."

My explanation went on until the part we arrived. By this time, everyone in the room, except Sasuke and I, were raising their eyebrows. After I finished, they all took a deep breath and exchanged glances with each other.

"What's your name?" the mask guy asked.

"Shimazane Megumi," I answered automatically without thinking.

They didn't show the slightest bit of surprise. And they started introducing me to themselves. But that wasn't all. My day ended with Sir Kakashi saying, "Okay, Sasuke _you_ train Megumi everything a ninja should learn."

And we were both horrified.

**Haruko:**

I started to go inside the gate, but Itachi steered me away.

"Hey, I thought you said we arrived," I pointed out. "Why don't we go in? Do we need passports or something?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Passports?"

"Yeah. Passports. Those little booklet things that look like address books you have to get when you board the plane."

Itachi smiled amusedly but still looked a bit confused. "You need planes to go to other places? Why? Are they fast? Do they get you where you want to go quick enough?"

"Not exactly, although they _are_ faster than the usual car or ship. Haven't you ever heard of one?"

"I have, only I prefer walking or just you know..."

"Your jumping stuff."

"I wouldn't put it like that, but yes. Anyway, I would personally recommend a good seal formation which could get you where you wanted to go in an instant, or just a very good Genjutsu will do, otherwise you would be subjected to chakra drainage..."

"I don't know what you're talking about, okay, so just tell me about things I can understand."

"You're a rather slow learner."

"I am not!" I exclaimed stopping and putting my hands on my hips.

"Sure you are. I'd bet my position in the Akatsuki for it."

"What's that? Some cult?"

"By now, I'm sure you would have gathered that I belong to the best terrorist group in the whole land."

"Yeah, right. I couldn't care less if you belonged to a 'Save Cows, Don't Use Leather' group."

"Wouldn't you?"

I thought for a second. "Well, I guess I would," I said.

"Stop saying things which aren't probably true. That attitude could get you in trouble."

"Fine, fine, fine. Where exactly are we going, anyway? My feet are starting to kill me."

"You'll see. And don't you think it would kill you more if you never had any feet?"

I fell silent and thought about it all the way to where we'd be going. Eventually, I never complained or mentioned my feet again to him after that.

After a few more hours, finally, we approached a small, rather dingy- looking building with tattered curtains and a hideously maroon front door. I stared at it distastefully.

"And what is that supposed to be?" I demanded. "I walked a thousand miles just to arrive at a stupid shack; some squatters' area?"

He shrugged. "You'll see once you get inside. And no more complaints. Once you arrive inside, you will be in constant surveillance even if you think you're not. Take my word for it. Oh, another thing. Whenever we are in the company of other people, please do _not_ expect me to be as talkative as I am now. I never am, usually. And I'm a feared assassin. Got that?"

"Whatever, Itachi. Whatever." Then I smiled as I looked at him, and a hint of a smile also appeared on his lips. And I knew he understood too.

Then he opened the door, and in we walked, while I never gave a thought to what would happen to me. And most probably, whatever would seal my fate was waiting in this little pathetic old house.


	3. Chapter 3

**Megumi:**

Sakura, the girl, had stood up. "Excuse me, but why does Sasuke have to be the one to train her?"

Sir Kakashi said without looking up, "You can do it instead, if you want, Sakura."

She gave a start. "I was referring to Naruto."

"Are you kidding?" Sasuke practically spoke to her for the first time since he had ignored her. "Naruto? That geek? Train her?"

Sakura shrugged. "Just a suggestion. At least he knows much more than her."

"I know much more than he does," Sasuke pointed out.

"Yeah, but... well,"

I sighed. I never quite enjoyed it when people talked as if I wasn't there. "It's okay," I stated. They both looked at me. "I'm not going to steal your boyfriend," I told Sakura. They both started choking.

She looked like a ripe cherry, while Sasuke was even more horrified. "She's not... we're not..." he sputtered.

Then I understood. "Oops. Sorry. I just... assumed, because, you know..." I scratched my head.

"Forgiven, Megumi," Naruto stated, who didn't mind when Sasuke called him a geek. "They're really not... together. Because Sakura's mine."

At this, Sakura's eyes went furious and she stomped over to Naruto shouting "What's gotten into you? How dare you say that..."

As they bickered, Sasuke quietly gestured to me and we went outside.

"Are they always like that? And I don't believe you're not... together with Sakura. She seemed so jealous."

He shook his head. "Yeah, they're always like that. Naruto likes Sakura a lot but she has this stupid huge crush on me. But I don't like her."

"I see." It was all I could say. I sensed he didn't want to talk about it.

"We better start training you."

"Sure. But before you start letting me do handstands, why don't you give me some background info first? About everything: the village, ninjas' lives, your abilities, methods; like I said, the basics. Well?"

He started telling me about everything I wanted and needed to know. Soon enough, I had learned lots of things concerning their land and whatever had happened and took place that was important. Then he started telling me about his family, his brother, and I was completely horrified as I listened, especially when he told me he still felt something for his brother.

"What do others say about what you feel for your brother?"

He looked at me strangely. "I never told anyone else about what I felt about my brother. Only you."

This time, it was my turn to look at him strangely. "Why? Is it important for me to save my cousin?"

He smiled wearily. "No, I just felt like saying it to someone."

"Then why didn't you tell either of your friends back there?"

"Naruto? Who would ruin my reputation, spread it, and use it against me? And Sakura, who would immediately use it to blackmail me and do something I wouldn't agree to? I don't trust them both."

I was astounded. Honestly, I was. We only met a few hours before. And he couldn't trust me that easily. But he did. And somehow, there's something about telling the truth. I knew that he wasn't lying. And from then on, I knew there was more than what met the eye with this guy I was talking to.

**Haruko:**

I stepped inside, and I was completely surprised or anything stronger than that word when I saw not a dirty old house, but a very elegant and grand building instead. "Oh my God," I whispered, when I saw all those heavy velvet curtains and glistening marble statues. "Wow…" I breathed. There was even a large fountain which spouted water.

"Is this the girl?" a weird voice suddenly asked.

I looked at the speaker. He looked strange like his voice too. About two pairs of bridge piercings and a lower lip ring on his face. "All you need is a facelift and eyebrow piercing," I commented. I couldn't help it. He had to be in his twenties, whether early or late, I'm not so sure. But he looked young enough to be interested in tattoos and piercings.

"Respect the leader," Itachi suddenly thundered. I stared at him like he was crazy.

"Okay, okay," I held up my hands. "I'm gonna shut up... one more question: Why have you people brought me here?"

The weird guy grinned and rubbed his hands together. "Excellent, Itachi... excellent choice. Attend to the preparations immediately. Send word to everyone!"

I scratched my head. "What preparations?"

Ring-guy looked happily at me. "Why, my wedding, of course."

"Congratulations!" I greeted. I just love weddings and I couldn't help smiling. "Who's the bride?"

"Why, you, of course." he said, and then left, leaving me to stare at him open-mouthed. The smile disappeared from my face, and every blood cell drained the color from my face.

- - - -

"Itachi!" I called in the middle of the night. The weird guy said our wedding would be three days away. I didn't like him; I liked Itachi more. So in the middle of an enormous night, I scaled the whole place, looking for any rooms. In the third floor, there were a total of nine rooms. I looked through them one-by-one.

In the last room, I finally found him. I couldn't be mistaken... his body build, the hair, and the warmth I instantly felt on looking at the silhouette. "Itachi!" Still, he didn't hear. I decided to use the element of surprise and I burst into the room.

"What the--" he turned around. "Haruko? What are you—"

"It's dark... can't you turn on the lights?" I groped for the light switch.

"No, don't..." he started to tell me, but the lights flickered on.

And as a result of my folly, I stared openmouthed at the image of his naked body.

"Turn around, you idiot!" he exclaimed.

My cheeks were very red. "Yes! I mean... of course! Uh... I'm sorry, I mean..." I turned around.

He didn't say anything for a moment. "There, you can turn around back."

My face was still flaming. Slowly, I faced him. "I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking. Really, Itachi, I'm sorry. Honest."

He sighed. "Do you realize that this place is forbidden from someone like you?"

I looked at the floor. "I can't help it... you're the only one I know around here. And... I really need your help."

He looked at me suspiciously. "What kind of help?"

I took a deep breath, really deep. "Well, I need you to help me escape from my marriage with ugly guy especially because it's three days away."

He grunted. "Yeah, so he can blow my head off."

"Not before we blow his head off," I pointed out.

"So," he rubbed his hands mockingly, "Have you got a plan? Where do we enter? What time? Where? How?" He looked at me expectantly.

I blushed. "I haven't got a plan," I admitted.

"So think of one!" he threw his hands up, frustrated.

After fifteen minutes, I lightened up. It wasn't the best of plans, but it was surefire. And it was easy. "I've got it." I stated calmly.

"Yeah sure, well? Let's hear it."

I stared at him. "He can't marry me if I marry someone else first."

He grinned. "Yeah, sure, you don't know anyone around here except me. Who'd marry you?"

I grinned too— a bit sheepishly. "Exactly. I don't know anyone but you. Got it?"

Well, that instant, he got it, all right. And the grin from Itachi's mouth disappeared entirely while we stared at each other in silence.


	4. Chapter 4

**Megumi:**

I was dead tired. It was about twelve midnight, and still, my limbs were aching because 'Uchiha Sasuke' made me kick a branch off a tree. Oh, sure, it was a pretty small branch. But it was at least three feet above my height. And the guy kept blabbing about something called 'chakra'. Don't ask me… I have absolutely no idea. Okay, okay, so like, I'm probably just pissed off—a lot.

Anyway, I'm lying down on a mat on the floor, with a single pillow, and bruises all over my arms. I didn't even receive any ointment or something to put on them! Anyway, I don't know how, but I slept it all off. And the next morning, I woke up without feeling anything. Except all of my limbs felt like fire. Completely wonderful.

I slid open the door and stumbled on the four Stooges.

"Good morning!" the blond-haired guy, Naruto, I think, said. It was quite a bit too jolly for me. "How was your sleep?"

"Fine, except that now, I really am feeling like hell!" I exclaimed the last bit while looking at them each in turn. I threw up my hands. "I mean, don't you agree? Don't I look like it too?"

Sakura looked at me from head to toe. "I… don't think there's a difference," she stated, in a matter-of-fact way. "You look okay."

"Yeah, sure, you can do it easily with all your years of training, but come on!" I scoffed. "I just arrived here yesterday and you already made me blast off branches a hundred feet above me? With my bare foot!"

"If you really want us to agree, then okay, you _do_ look like hell," Sasuke quipped. "Happy now?"

I shot him a glare. "Thanks for that. I guess we're going to start again today, huh?"

The only adult among us, um, I think his name was Kakashi… well, he shook his head. "First, you eat. But there's no time for training today."

"Why?" I asked, this time confused.

"We guys have got a mission today, so we haven't got time to train you. You've got to stay here, and make sure no one sees you."

"Mission? What mission? When will you be back? And why do I have to stay out of others' sight? Is it, like, some sort of cardinal rule or something?"

"Don't you even care for your own safety?" Sasuke exclaimed incredulously. "What if someone sees you and gets suspicious about it?"

"So what?" Sakura added, shrugging. "That way, she can get to meet other people, right?"

"Sakura, don't start." Naruto reprimanded. "Come on, we have to go. Megumi, take heed. Don't go out. Yeah, it's sort of a cardinal rule."

I sighed. "Sure. Whatever. Bye."

Without another word, they disappeared. _Cool,_ I thought, while rolling my eyes.

**Haruko:**

"Please?!" I begged for the umpteenth time. And for the record, I was _starting_ to consider groveling in front of him. "Like I said, it's not a really difficult thing. We could just, like, run off now and get married."

He didn't say anything for a moment. "I need to think about it, you know."

"Aw!" I protested. "What's so hard about this? It's just a yes or a no—"

"_Just_? Are you nuts? I still have to think about everything after this. He could kill _me_ before you can say "I do"—"

"Or he couldn't!" I cut in. "We can kill him first."

He raised a brow at her. "Oh really? You can't even fight, let alone kill somebody."

It was my turn to raise my brow at him. "True, I can't kill. _Yet_. But you can train me." My confidence increased. "Give me two days."

Itachi made a sort of snicker. "Two days? I had twelve years."

"Well, we don't have much time and you can't do anything about that" I shot bossily. He still looked at me like I was crazy. I couldn't take that taunting—teasing—annoying look he gave me. _Jerk! Like he had any brilliant ideas!_ I thought as I glared at him. Blazing with fury, I said "_Or_ you can give me directions on how to get away and you'd get into his room; blow his head off and before any of the others would know, you and I had escaped already."

"Like that's gonna work" he mocked some more.

I clenched my hands into fists. My arms were crossed on my chest now. "Well then… any _other_ bright ideas, Mr. _Uchiha_?" I gritted out.

- - - -

So, I am proud to say that we worked out according to _my_ plan.

But the jerk, with all his ruthlessness and heartlessness and spitefulness couldn't help but torment me on the first morning of my "training". But then, being the spitfire that I was, I continued throwing him looks that said 'I'll get you back, just you wait' and 'I hate you so much, I could bury you alive myself'. Yeah, I would _love_ to do the latter but then, he's my trainer, I can't just kill him.

"Higher! Why can't you get it higher?!" he stormed, disturbing my most concentrated thoughts of how to kill him or some other thing—blah-blah.

"Because!" I retorted loudly, lowering my leg. "My bottom is getting numb and I practically hear my leg cracking! I expect it'll break soon."

"You're complaining again" I heard the orange masked member—Tobi, I think.

"Try being in my place then" I said to him, now sitting flat on my bottom and stretching my legs.

"You do know it's not easy for beginners" a long-haired blonde… um… Deidara said.

I didn't say anything.

"Itachi" the large Zetsu came walking to the back of the house. Everyone turned to him. "The leader needs you. He says you bring the girl."

"Come on" Itachi's voice floated as he passed me.

I quickly stood and on the way, I checked how I looked. This is going to be the second time I'll be facing my groom-to-be. Okay, so I take back the part where I said he was an ugly guy. He's just not my type. Oh well, I still have to look somehow presentable.

Then a grin crossed my lips. If he's not satisfied on how I look, I can always blame it on Itachi for being _too hard_ on me. _Cool_, I thought as I grinned evilly.


	5. Chapter 5

**Megumi:**

It was boring around the house. No television, no internet, and not even a single Toblerone chocolate bar insight. Speaking of chocolate, I think I recall someone who likes Hershey's. I racked my brains for a minute, thinking who it could be. No one came to mind. Shrugging off the idea, I looked around a bit more. Still nothing. _I could die in here… not even a book, or a radio, or a DVD player. _

The silence was utterly deafening. Miraculously that I thought I was dreaming, someone slid open the door. For a moment, I hesitated, not knowing if it was real or not. After a voice sounded, I almost jumped up and down in joy.

"Sir Kakashi?" a male voice sounded, accompanied by slight footsteps pattered on the floor. I heard the sound of some doors being opened and shut.

_Should I show myself, or just hide in here like a creep?_ I thought. _Besides, he knows Sir Kakashi, so I shouldn't have any problem._

Still with a little feeling of uncertainty tugging at me, I cautiously crept up towards the door and slid it just a teeny, teeny bit open. _Dammit, I can't see his face. _I slid the door a notch wider and peered through it with my eye. _I still can't see him…_

"Who are you?" in a single instant, the whole door slid open and I tumbled out, landing flat on my bottom in an utterly ridiculous position and my hair a mass of tangles all over my face.

"Uh…" I groaned, trying to get up but not succeeding very well.

"Oh." He offered me a hand. I took it, but not at all that kindly. I felt like I was flaming in embarrassment. I stood up, and faced the guy. "What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I… uh… well, you see," I swallowed. "It—I mean… I was just…" I averted my eyes from him after having a good look at his face. He had long hair, black, but his eyes were the complete opposite. I don't really know… each either his pupils were a white color, or he didn't have any pupils at all. Otherwise, he looked sort of cute.

"You're not that good at lying."

"Oh, I never needed to. Who, are _you_?" I shot back. I started dusting off my arms.

"Are you new around here? And how come you're staying with Team Seven?"

This time, I didn't know what to answer. That was because I didn't understand a single idea that he introduced. I shrugged. "How do I know if you can be trusted? I don't even know your name."

He smirked. "Hyuuga Neji."

**Haruko:**

The leader's expression was grim—like disappointedly grim— but it seemed to ease as he looked at me. I wanted to raise my left eyebrow and ask him if he really was that "in love" with me; enough that he would kidnap me from the other world. But I wouldn't want Itachi thundering at me again because I disrespected his _leader_.

"I've been called away, Itachi" he said turning to my companion. I tried not to smile but a grin was slowly forming on my lips. "I have my own business I have to attend to." He looked at me as if to emphasize I shouldn't hear it. "It'll take a few days perhaps but I want you to continue with the preparations and Haruko can help if she wants. I also want you to fully train her in all areas. I'll be going after a few hours but when I come back, I want you all here."

Don't you think it's really annoying when people talk as if you're not there?! "I wish you a safe trip" I said quietly. Honestly, I was sincere. I mean, this guy didn't do anything bad to me if you don't count the kidnapping and the marriage. We don't even talk unless he calls for me and this is only the second time we faced each other.

He smiled. "You know you look better when you smile" I cut in before he could say anything. I couldn't help it.

This time, he laughed. It sounded like a melody in the wind or something like that and you can't tell that this guy's the head of the Akatsuki group which is feared by all. "I don't want to go but my presence is utterly needed. I wish I could stay and forgo with the wedding" he said as he looked straight at me. "But I promise I will come back for you, my bride-to-be."

I made a face. As if the thought of his wishing to stay wasn't enough.

I felt elated that he was leaving and thought that fun was on its way. But I was in for a big surprise.


	6. Chapter 6

**Megumi:**

"For the tenth time, they're not here! I don't know where those guys have been to and even if I knew, I wouldn't remember the name, anyway. Do you know what chocolate is?"

He looked blank. The poor guy was probably trying to understand my logic. He frowned. "Okay. Uh, of course I know what chocolate is. Where are you from?"

"I don't know. I guess I forgot. How about you? How many years have you been staying here in Konnoha?" I took a bite of the apple I found on a basket.

Neji shrugged. "All my life. Gets pretty boring."

I nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I can understand that. I've been here for about a day and a half and I'm dying of boredom. Why were you looking for Sir Kakashi, anyway?"

He straightened up at that. "Uh, well, it's just a simple matter about my sensei and a little disagreement. You know, mock battles and stuff."

"Oh. So they've got to fight or something?"

"It's more like a bet."

"I see. I didn't know men their age still do that especially that we're dealing with the fact that they are teachers."

He raised an eyebrow. "Oh? So is Kakashi your sensei too? I mean, do you at least regard him as your own?"

I shook my head. "Actually, it was Sasuke who trained me. And I hurt my leg doing it."

"So, you're one of, uh…" I could see that he was having some speech problems. "Well, you're one of his… admirers? Or should I say fan club?"

I rolled my eyes at him. "Trust me, I'm not like others out there. And if ever he has a fan club, I hope they will have lots of fun realizing how stupid they are and how pointless their club is. Sasuke barely looks at girls, and I doubt if he even knows the difference between the genders. At least, that's what I noticed in my stay here."

"You're pretty observant, aren't you?" he asked, apparently amused.

"You can bet on that. How about you? Do you have a fan club in particular?"

Neji looked at me like I was crazy. "Me? A fan club? You must be kidding… uh…"

"Megumi. I forgot to tell you. Sorry."

He waved it off with a hand. "Honestly? I don't have a fan club."

I shrugged. "I see. Well, I thought you'd have one too, you know."

He smirked. "Why? I mean, I know I'm a genius and everything, but I didn't expect a girl to tell me I'm also drop-dead handsome and sexy."

My mouth _absolutely_ dropped open. "Excuse me?" I asked. "I never said anything like that. How thick can you get?" I eyed him. "You know, you people are some of the most obnoxious ones I've met." I folded my arms and stood up, letting out a short laugh.

"Admit it," he said teasingly but with a touch of seriousness. "You think I'm about the hottest guy you've ever seen, right?"

I turned around, an unbelieving look on my face. "Why don't you just get out now and run back to where you came from?"

Suddenly, his face became serious again. "Of course not. I was just kidding. I better go."

I gaped at him. "Huh—what the… yeah… I mean…"

But he was already gone.

**Haruko: **

_Yes! He's going away!_ I thought as Itachi and I were walking to the entrance. Okay, I know that I should at least look somehow void that he was going but… well, I'm just grinning!

And since Itachi was my trainer/ guardian/ best friend and was beside me, I suppose he really wanted me to look the part of a disappointed fiancée—which I'm not, by the way—so he leaned towards me and whispered, "Don't smile too much."

Frankly, I could've been laughing out loud at that but the others were nearby so I exerted so much effort not to. Then, I responded "I could really play the part of being your girlfriend instead, especially in front of him—just to get this whole thing done with."

"No! You are not going to do that! I'm gonna get killed!" he reacted in a low forceful voice.

"Dare?" I teased.

"I'm going to deny you." It sounded like a poor threat to me.

"And I'm _so_ scared." Sarcasm comes really natural for me.

"Don't even think about it."

I laughed. "Yeah, yeah. Oh wait…" Something suddenly snapped in my head. "What happened to Sir Kakashi?"

He looked at me sharply. "How did you know Kakashi?"

"He tutored me for a short time without Tsunade knowing. And he was there when you took me. You even called him with his first name" I frowned at him. "Don't you remember?"

Itachi just looked at me disbelievingly. "I didn't take you from him. I took you from…"

"Yeah, you did. You even had a little fight. It was days ago. How come you can't remember?"

"Don't you remember your cousin?" he asked.

"Cousin?" My frown creased. "I don't think I have one. I don't think we've met."

"Don't you remember your world?"

I smiled. "Hmm… You know what I think? I think you need more sleep. Get over yourself, man. I know being a wanted assassin is obviously stressing you but I didn't know you have the tendency to hallucinate."

"What do _you_ remember?"

"Um… Okay, Sir Kakashi invited me for lunch since they had no training that day. I actually remember asking him why he was so weird and blah, blah… Then, we encountered you and your partner, Kisame. And you got me from him. But it was only because it was two against one, in my opinion. And then you eventually brought me here and your leader announced that I was going to be his bride… That brings us to now" I explained as briefly as I could, raising my eyebrows at him.

He just studied me. "And you're okay that we just took you?"

"Not really at first but well, I'm here. It's not like I could kill all of you to get away. Besides, I could get free training here. You all aren't that bad."

He was still looking at me as if expecting me to be joking—which I'm not, because it was everything I remembered.


	7. Chapter 7

**Megumi: **

The whole team straggled in, with Sir Kakashi taking the lead. They were dressed in mud from head to toe, and had dirt all over their faces and arms and stuff.

I took in their appearances with an open mouth. My jaw was probably going to permanently stay down with the number of times I dropped it in one day. "What happened?!" I exclaimed.

Naruto groaned and dropped to the ground. Sakura leaned on the wall, gasping for breath while the other two remained standing, yet very weakly. "Hey…" I spoke, still cautious. "Guys… what's wrong?"

Suddenly, I noticed that Sir Kakashi feigned fainting. I knew he was joking because of the way he 'fell'. I folded my arms. "So, that's it. You all got into a food fight."

Naruto's head unexpectedly rose up. "Food fight? But…" he looked around himself to check if he was caked in chocolate cake instead of mud.

I shrugged. "Yeah. A food fight. I mean, weren't you people eating mud pies?" I snickered.

"Honestly, Megumi!" Sakura exclaimed. "We're all in pain right now."

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah?" I gestured to Sir Kakashi. "So how come your sensei's playing fainting boy? That's so low… I mean, I can see through it."

Sasuke shrugged. "That's the way he faints."

"Uh-uh. So, like, he must be that weak, letting you see lots of times how he faints in the middle of a battle, and in an identical way every time too. How cool."

Sir Kakashi lifted his head, while groans emanated from the rest in the room. "I'm not that weak and lousy," he remarked. "Sorry guys. I guess we can't just fool her that easily."

"Fool me?" I asked. "What am I to you, some sort of experiment, or what? I mean, just because I came from another world or dimension or blah-blah doesn't mean that I don't have half a brain. I can think as well as any of you do."

"We wanted to have a bit of fun," Naruto said. "We haven't done that in ages."

"Look," I pointed out, "I can cope up with it if you people play a little trick or two. It just so happens that that last one was really lousy and dry."

"You think so?" Sasuke asked.

"Yeah!" I exclaimed.

"Well then, eat this!" he removed his hand from his back and threw a huge blob of mud at my face that sent me shrieking and screaming. The next thing I knew, all five of us were outside, and I was caked in mud too, just like the four of them. We had a furious mud fight. We practically ran like a bunch of kids all over the grounds, and threw dirt on each other's faces. Naruto's pants even got pulled down. Hahahaha… I know.

Before I knew it, I was enjoying myself, and I thought, _These people aren't so bad after all… if only I could stay here forever…_ I had completely forgotten about Neji and the battle and his crazy airs. They didn't exist.

**Haruko:**

"I hate you" I said in his face. It was a day after the leader left and I had insisted that we continue with the training. But Itachi, being the sadistic idiot that he is, made me do splits. It's not that I can't execute splits. It's the fact that splits are practically the most basic thing anyone can teach me. We were in a training room.

"Thank you" he said with all taunting, looking down on me.

I've done at least 14 executions of splits and I couldn't take anymore of it. Still not getting up, I told him "Can't you teach me strategies instead of this?"

"No."

"That's it." I stood up and faced him. He was performing his hide-the-feelings-through-a-blank-face act again. I charged him through the Body Flicker he taught me and attacked with a side kick. But he got hold of my leg. _Damn!_ I realized he used the Sharingan to see through the technique. "I hate you" I told him again, trying to pull my leg free yet in vain.

He looked at me, his _eyes_ laughing. This only made me angrier.

I shifted my weight and swung my other leg at him. He stopped the attack with a hand and pulled my other leg. Having just landed my leg to the ground, I lost balance and landed on my bottom. "Ow!" I shrieked.

This time, he let out a short insulting laugh at me. "It's your fault."

"I hate you! This is your entire fault!" I accused. He laughed again. Unexpectedly, the lights went out and only a little emergency light was beaming on us. "Even the electricity agrees with me!"

He neared the door which he was closed. "I can't get us out of here" he said after a while.

"What?!" I walked to him and tried the knob. It wouldn't budge. "The door's automatic?"

"I guess. We have to wait for the lights to come back on" he said and went to sit on the marble floor.

_I'm stuck with him! Dang it all!_


	8. Chapter 8

**Megumi:**

"How long are you planning to stay?" Sakura asked me, flipping her hideously (shh) pink hair over her shoulder. You could tell she was proud of it.

I quickly averted my eyes to avoid my usual bursts of sarcasm. "Uh… well… I don't really know about that. I mean, your hair is ugly—_I mean," _I quickly corrected myself, "I'm just going to… see if I can go somewhere else."

"Why did you come here in the first place?" she asked.

"Well…" that was when it hit me. I had totally forgotten how I came upon Konnoha! I knew I was there for a reason, and because I needed to rescue someone, but who? How could I if I forgot?

"Megumi?" Sakura asked. "Cat got your tongue?"

I shook out of my thoughts. "Oh, sorry… I just… I was just drifting off to dreamland." I grinned. "It happens to me all the time."

"So, how did you get to be here?" Apparently, she'd forgotten everything that I told her on that first day. But I didn't think it was impossible, because I forgot it too.

I racked my brains—hard. "Well, it was something about a laptop… and… um… a picture, and… well… French… and… uh!" I groaned in frustration. "I can't remember!"

She eyed me suspiciously. "Then how come you were with Sasuke? Are you sure he didn't just get you?"

"What exactly do you mean?" I eyed her.

"You know."

I brought a hand to my mouth. "Of course not! I never did anything with him! I mean, we never did anything together on that first day! We just talked!"

Sasuke approached the duo, a frown on his face. "What do you mean 'just talked'? We did lots of things on that first day, right? I mean, I taught you lots of tips on how to do them properly."

Sakura gasped and brought a hand to her mouth. "I knew it! Oh my God, that's… that's—"

"We never did anything!" I gasped, horrified. "Sasuke, it's not what you think—"

"You mean you really rubbed all those stuff into her?" Sakura asked, her cheeks flaming red.

"Yeah," Sasuke answered, with an expression that said _Duh! What-do-you-think?_

Sakura gulped and immediately dashed away. I turned to the Uchiha with a look that could burn holes through rocks. "What were you thinking?!" I hissed.

"We really did lots of things that first day, didn't we?" he asked. "I _did _train you, you know."

"She wasn't talking about that!" I protested. "She was talking about… you know!"

"I don't know." He protested. "What _was_ she talking about?"

"Uuh! You are so hopeless! She was talking about… well… you know… that sort of embarrassing stuff." I hid my face in my hands. It practically took him a full minute to realize what I meant. But he got it all right.

He gulped. "I didn't know."

"Obviously." I retorted. "But what can you do? You've told her that you rubbed it in. You've said that you even gave me tips on how to… do them properly. You… are… such… an… idiot!"

He swallowed. "How bad can that be? I mean, it's not true you know, and… well… so, like…"

"Shut up," I declared. "There's nothing we can do about it."

Sasuke sat down wearily. "I had no idea that my mouth would get us into trouble. But I don't usually use my mouth."

"Whatever." I looked through the spaces between my fingers. "This is stupid…" I groaned. "Doom…"

**Haruko:**

_Oh man!_ Can it get any worse than this? I frowned as I looked at the blocked door. I had called for people to open it from the outside but it seems they couldn't hear.

"I can always blast the door" he said and positioned for the first hand seal.

"No, don't! When the leader finds out, we're toast. We can wait."

Silence echoed as he let his hands down and I walked to stay beside him.

"I'm hungry" I groaned in a low voice.

"You're _always_ hungry" he said.

"Shut up. You still owe me for dropping me to my butt."

"It was your fault."

I looked at him. "Get away from me."

He laughed. "Wanna try hitting me again?"

"Only if you allow me to hit you" I said.

"Deal."

I stood up and quickly produced four more clones of me. Together, we encircled him and attacked. All at once, all four clones puffed into smoke and I realized he was holding my fist. _Dang it!_ I swung my leg across his, intending to get him out of balance. But instead, I must've twisted my other leg and got _myself_ unbalanced. So, I fell on top of him.

It was then, that the door opened.

We both looked towards it and saw Tobi, Deidara and Hidan gaped at us.

Silence.

"What are you doing?" Tobi asked.

Then I realized what they must be assuming. I mean, I was kneeling on _top_ of Itachi!!! "It's not what you think!" I said and immediately got off him. "We're not doing anything!"

"Just because no one was looking, doesn't mean nothing happened" Itachi said as he got up and walked to the door.

I flushed. _What the—!_ "That's not—"

"What?" He turned to look at me, ignorant of the effect of his words. "They saw it. There's no point in hiding."

"No!" I practically screamed in denial. "Will you shut up?!" _Now, I can die_, I thought.


	9. Chapter 9

**Megumi:**

"Is this really all there is in your village?" I asked. As part of 'training', the rest of the team had requested Sasuke, who was now my sort-of instructor, to show me around. And as far as I knew, I never came across a single chocolate store or a small retail store, although I had to admit that the small village was what you would call… cute. It was cozy, actually.

"Shut up!" he reprimanded for the umpteenth time. "Don't say it so loud. People might hear."

I sighed. "I was just looking for chocolate, you know. And I like Konnoha, I really do. It's just that what is frustrating is that there really isn't any chocolate around."

"Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate," he muttered. "I wouldn't be surprised if your real surname was 'Chocolate'."

I stopped walking. "Oh? Haven't you ever tasted it? That glorious, sweet, rich, creamy, taste that fills your mouth with oh-so-wonderful flavor… sometimes with nuts, or milk, or just rich and dark. Well, Sasuke, haven't you ever eaten chocolate before? Come on, tell me."

He grabbed my hand. "_No, _I haven't eaten it, at least not in five years, and I have no intention of doing so. Now, Megumi, let's get going—"

"Sasuke!" a voice exclaimed.

Both of us looked up to see a girl with blond hair and bangs on one side. "Who is she?" I murmured, nudging him in the side.

Sasuke's eyes darkened. "Ino."

I sort of gathered that this gal was another active member of his fan club. I started teasing him about it.

"Ooh… Sasuke's got a girlfriend, a girlfriend, a girlfriend," I said in a sing-song voice. "So, like… has anything come between you yet?"

Ino approached flirtatiously and batted her _short_ lashes. "Hey, Sasuke, do you mind if I… talk to you in private?"

"You can say anything in front of her," he replied, nodding his head towards me.

I stepped backward. "Oh no, really, I wouldn't want to intrude… honestly, it's okay…" I started edging away from them but surprisingly, Sasuke grasped my arm… a bit too hard.

Ino raised an eyebrow. "Well, if I really must say it, I'd have to say it then… you see, I'm looking for someone to be my partner."

"For what?" he glared.

The girl sighed. "In short, I just want to ask if you're available."

Silence. This time, I felt as if I shouldn't reply. My eyes roved back and forth between the two of them, feeling the tense air.

Ino shrugged. "I'm not taking no for an answer unless you say you have your own girl."

_Oh no, he's got it going,_ I thought to myself. _She's really making it hard for him. _More silence reigned in the next few moments.

Without warning, his hand shot out and pulled me towards him. I noticed that his face was red all over. "She's my girlfriend," Sasuke declared.

Once again dropping my mouth, I started to protest but he pinched my shoulder and stomped on my foot—really hard. Trying my best to get out a smile, I grinned lopsidedly and said, "Yeah… uh… I mean, of course…" Deep inside, I was burning.

"Oh?" Ino leaned closer. "That's nice. Are you REALLY sure?"

I swallowed inaudibly while the idiot gulped. After a few seconds, he nodded, rather fiercely.

Then she jumped up and down. "NO!!! That was just a fake! It's not true! You just made it up! I promised Sakura I'd get to be your girlfriend, and I have to prove it! And then you. A horrible person, just came and then you just took him away from me! No..." she continued ranting and raving.

I looked at Sasuke. He _didn't_ look at me. It was clear that he didn't know what to do. I gave him a look, the kind that says come-on-we'd-better-tell-the-truth. But he replied me with a look that replied, no-way-I'm-not-giving-up.

"I need proof! I need proof! I need it!!!! I shouldn't lose the bet!" While Ino trampled around like a wild rhinoceros on the loose, the two of us quietly tried to slip away, and Sasuke leaned closer to whisper something. But at the last second (although I didn't know it yet), an overweight, obese vendor passed behind him, and as a result, I felt our lips awkwardly touch each other, as a swirl of emotions enveloped my head.

**Haruko:**

I glanced at the items of the vending stalls as I passed by. A lot of people were buying everywhere. I never knew Konnoha had that much a population. The sun had risen by now. _Good thing they don't know who I am or they'd be crowding over me_, I thought as I clasped my hands behind my back and playfully skipped forward, still looking around.

I never meant to venture outside the Akatsuki hideout. It just happened. Moreover, I never meant to come over to Konnoha without the members' knowledge. It just happened. grin

**Just a little while ago…**

I don't know why but I suddenly found myself awake earlier than the others just moments ago. It was probably about 6 in the morning because it was still dark. I dressed myself in one of my red self-designed shirts, black shorts that reached to my mid-thigh and wore the black boots that almost stretch to my knees. Quietly, I paced down the hallway so as not to wake the others. Good thing the soles of my boots were rubber or it would've created a lot of noise on the marble staircase.

_But where would I be going?_ I stopped in the middle of the large living room, thoughtfully chewing on my lower lip. _How about…_ I grinned in excitement. "This is gonna be good…" I murmured to myself and hurried to the door.

**Back to where we stopped…**

I paused and looked straight at the dark-haired guy. Titling my head in thought, I couldn't help but notice that he looked _very_ much like Itachi. But why would he? Itachi doesn't have a brother… does he? After living outside Konnoha for like more than half of my life, I wouldn't know. Besides, he never said so. Intrigued, I couldn't stop myself from nearing him.

Just as I was about to reach him, I suddenly bumped into someone. Looking at the girl, I saw she had hazel-brown eyes and long black hair which she tied in a ponytail but I noticed that her cheeks were flaming. Even then, I unexpectedly got the feeling that I knew her.

We stared at each other some more until the dark-haired guy came over. "Megumi!" he called.

Both of us girls turned to him. And when he saw me? His mouth formed a small "o".


End file.
